PROBLEMS OF THE NATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE POPULATION OF EASTERN GALICIA (1867–1914)

The social and political life of European countries (or multinational empires) of the 19th and early 20th centuries is characterized by two processes: on the one hand, the formation of a national idea and on its basis the formation of the national consciousness of national minorities, on the other hand, the aggravation and growth of national and political struggle. Population censuses, various sociological and statistical studies played a significant role in the process of implementing various political plans and strategies carried out by the empires, justifying reforms, adopting or changing legislation, etc. These studies and censuses were falsified in the interests of the ruling classes of society and unfortunately are sometimes uncritically used by Ukrainian researchers. The article analyzes the population censuses of Galicia conducted between 1867–1914. In the article it is pointed out the falsification of the results of the demographic sections by the Austrian authorities and the Polish regional administration. The authors assume that as a result of digital manipulation, Eastern Galicia was presented as a multi-ethnic region with most Polish community, although in reality the majority of the region's population were Ukrainians.